It's only OTAs, but Rams rookie TE Terrance Ferguson is putting on a show

I cannot pretend to believe that the ultimate tight end for the Los Angeles Rams was not the guy that the team tried to trade up for in the 2023 NFL Draft, Utah TE Dalton Kincaid. I cannot pretend that the team was not on target when it tried to trade up in the 2024 NFL Draft to select Georgia tight end Brock Bowers. I cannot even say with any certainty or conviction that the team did not try to leap up in the 2025 NFL Draft to select either Michigan tight end Colston Loveland or Penn State tight end Tyler Warren.

What I can say with complete conviction and certainty is that things always seem to have a way of working out for the best for the Rams.

In 2023, instead of TE Dalton Kincaid, the Rams emerged with three starters in IOL Steve Avila, OLB Byron Young, and NT Kobit Turner. Both OLB Byron Young and NT Kobie Turner, a.k.a. The Conductor, were finalists for 2023 DROY. In 2024, the Rams may not have landed TE Brock Bowers, but this team did land DROY OLB Jared Verse and DROY finalist DT Braden Fiske.

Still, the Rams' epic quest to find the perfect tight end successor continued. Well, until the 2025 NFL Draft, that is.

The Rams had a unique and rare opportunity to trade back in Round 1 of the 2025 NFL Draft. Trading back would relieve the Rams of two quite valuable picks in this year's draft. But for the price of the 26th (Round 1) and 101st (Round 3) overall picks, the Rams could help themselves to the Atlanta Falcons' 46th (Round 2), 242nd (Round 7), and a Round 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. The net exchange resulted in the Falcons getting a Round 1 and 3 picks by shipping a Round 1, 2, and 7 picks to the Rams.

So did the Rams have to settle in Round 2 by accepting the Falcons' offer? You may think that, but the team always has a master plan at work. After a myriad of trade scenarios run over and over by the team, the Rams were fully prepared to trade back in the 2025 NFL Draft. By doing so, the team did not compromise its draft goals.

You could argue that the Rams' decision to trade back set the wheel in motion for a sensational draft haul. The more I dive into what the team wanted to do and managed to accomplish, the more impressed I become. To encapsulate what the Rams managed to accomplish on Day 2 of the 2025 NFL Draft, it's time to revisit the 2025 Behind the Grind Episode 2.

When the Rams finally stepped up to the podium to make the 46th overall pick, the team didn't need to find instant impact players. But it was clear that the team's fixation on the tight end position meant that the team would almost certainly have to be confident that a worthwhile tight end would be on the board.

At the 16:40 mark, the Rams' brain trust reconvened to be clear of their Day 2 draft objectives, and Oregon TE Terrance Ferguson's name was mentioned right out of the gate. And as the video continues to play, the sole focus of Rams HC Sean McVay is about getting Oregon tight end Terrance Ferguson aboard.

The entire video is worth watching multiple times. There is so much to take away from this lone video.

But Rams fans have to be sure that Terrance Ferguson was not simply the cliche 'best player on the board,' that is, coachspeak for best consolation prize. But there are hints and clues throughout the Terrance Ferguson segment that confirm: A- The Rams really wanted Terrance Ferguson as their top player on Day 2, and B - The Rams took the risk that Ferguson would fall to them without the need to trade up.

It was clear that the Rams' patience had worn thin with waiting for players to fall to them on Day 3. But let's turn to the next slide and see how Terrance Ferguson earned the right to speak after OTAs in a press conference: